What weve learnt this NFL preseason NFC edition

The most watched dress rehearsal in the world has been under way for 3 weeks now.

Oddschecker | Thursday 1st September 2016 / 01:48

The most watched dress rehearsal in the world has been under way for 3 weeks now and the NFL preseason has given us a glimpse of what to expect from teams this season. If you haven’t watched much, I’ve got you covered. We start with the NFC.

Dallas Cowboys

As my good friends Stephen A. Smith quite often says, the Cowboys are an “accident waiting to happen”.

The team with strike weapons coming out the wazoo and an offensive line that could keep your wheelchair bound granddad upright has lost its starting quarterback… again. Tony Romo lasted all of 1 minute and 27 seconds before he was ushered off the field with fractured vertebrae.

Welcome Dak Prescott, the young lad whose been lighting it up in the preseason from before Romo’s injury. I don’t put a lot of stock in the preseason, but it’s hard to ignore Prescott who has recorded the best quarterback stats in a preseason of anyone since the year 2000. Prescott hasn’t seen many blitzes which is normal for the preseason but he will be tested come the start of the regular season. I’ll never back a team lead by a rookie to win the league but if this kid can hold his own until Romo gets back the Cowboys may have a chance to make it to playoffs

Carolina Panthers

The Carolina Panthers should stroll into the playoffs. I’m talking the take your girl out to lunch on a Sunday with the sunshine on your skin and the birds chirping type of stroll.

Who out of the NFC South is going to contend? You know it isn’t going to be the Saints. The team’s defence was atrocious last year conceding more than 30 points seven times on the way to being ranked the last place defence in the league.

Atlanta won’t be making any noise this year unless they artificially pump it into the stadium. Matt Ryan can be described in one word… Eh. The guy is as uninspiring as Bill Belichick half time interview and has had an age of time to get something going down south.

Tampa Bay is the only team with a real chance at unseating Carolina but with a relatively young team and a new head coach I see them needing another year to properly gel.

P.s. keep an eye on Cam Newton. He’ll be inventing the new ‘Dab’ soon enough.

Los Angeles Rams

For those of you who switched off the NFL last year and haven’t turned it back on since, chances are you’ve missed a few things with the rams. The Rams, formerly of St Louis made the trek out to sunny Los Angeles. The last team to represent LA was in fact the rams, fun fact of the day.

Now the Rams didn’t finish last, last season but they traded the 15th, 43rd, 45th and 76th pick for the First overall in the 2016 draft and picked up Jarred Goff. That’s a steep price to pay.

Not a big fan of the receiving core he has but he has an absolute animal in Todd Gurley running out of the backfield. The defence is solid but Goff has the potential to have a sound season at best. I think Jeff Fisher is an average coach and Goff’s preseason performances haven’t been too encouraging.

There’s still a lot of growing to do for the Rams.

Green Bay Packers

One of the great storied franchises in the NFL looks like it may have a season to remember.

They have one of the best quarterbacks in the league in Aaron Rodgers. The team boasts a rejuvenated and slimmer Eddie Lacy partnering James Starks for a thunder & lightning combination at running back and a returning Jordy Nelson. The team could sneeze and post points.

The division isn’t the most competitive either. The Bears and Lions will finish with sub .500 records this year – I can promise you that. The Vikings would’ve posed a serious threat for the division crown, until their quarterback did his ACL…

Personally, I love myself some NFC. There’s something about the swag that teams like the Panthers and Seahawks bring to the table. You’ve got your perennial comedy central routine in the Cowboys, Eagles fans that will start burning jerseys by the time week 3 rolls around and if you say you aren’t excited for a bit of Odell Beckham Jr. vs. Josh Norman twice a year I’d ask you to check your pulse because there’s something cold in your veins.